No one has ever been supportive of the government's decision to close our armoury, right from the very first time when veteran Russell Clarke received that letter in 2017. He has now passed on; he lived to be 100. There's never been anyone in our community who supported that. We've asked for the evidence, what led to the decision. We've never been able to get that information.
One of our veterans, George Manthorne, did an access to information request in 2021. I contacted him this week. He still has not received any of the studies, documents or reports that the government used to make its decision.
I will add that the North Novies played a significant role in Canada's history and at Vimy Ridge. We have an incredibly proud community, not just in the town of Amherst but also in northern Nova Scotia. We actually had the largest reservist regiment in all of Canada—now the Nova Scotia Highlanders.
Our veteran here, Justin McKay, recently organized for Amherst to have a monument to honour those who served in Afghanistan. He recently organized an event to commemorate 9/11. People come out in our community to honour those who have sacrificed their lives for our country. No one in our community wants it to be only historical. People want to continue to serve. They want our armouries to be reopened, and they want to be able to contribute to Canada's military.